Vladimir Putin is planning a stealth chemical attack in Ukraine and Western officials are concerned that the Russian President could resort to chemical warfare as a last resort as Russian troops are failing.

British intelligence shows that Putin’s troops have “largely stalled on all fronts” as they are struggling to meet their key objectives.

A US officials and intelligence chiefs believe that Putin will justify a chemical attack in Ukraine after the Kremlin accused them of planning to use biological or chemical weapons against Russian forces.

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Putin warned he ‘should be in no doubt, NATO will not tolerate any attack on allied sovereignty or territorial integrity’

A US official told journalists, “We do believe that we should be on the lookout for Russia to possibly use chemical or biological weapons.”

Ukrainian commanders defending the city of Mariupol have given a stark warning that Russian forces could target factories with “ammonia containers” to create “one of the biggest chemical catastrophes in the world.”

There are strong fears that Russia will either shell or bomb striking ammonia storage containers, which will create highly toxic chlorine gas into the atmosphere which would be a global problem.

A Ukrainian unit commander in Mariupol, who goes by the name Kirt, warned, “They use airstrikes, triple rocket launch strikes to destroy schools, hospitals and also they try to destroy tubs of chemicals inside the factories.”

Video footage taken by Ukrainian soldiers in an abandoned factory in Mariupol shows three barrels, which contain the dangerous and toxic chemical.

A soldier said, “Here’s the building where it is stored. We have found three barrels here. Everything is in the three of these.

“The building is fitted with iron sheets but it is clear it is just for looks – one barrel, two barrel and the third one under the ground level.

“The barrels are slightly mangled, but who the f*** knows whether they leak or not.

“This one’s definitely banged up, second one damaged too. There is a possibility that they are empty. But we were told that they are filled with ninety tons.

“Around us is an iron fence with ‘Danger! Ammonia’ written on it. And that’s f***ing it. If a plane hits this building, everything’s toast.”

Glen Grant, a defence expert at Baltic Security Foundation told the Express.co.uk, “I have not heard about this at all. But this would not surprise me.

“As they lose the initial combat stage, which they have, they will resort more and more to atrocities and to national destruction.”